Trek Role-Playing newb

I play many RPGs, and even bought some of the Last Unicorn books, though I never got any use out of them. So when the Trek itch tickled once more I put down my Dark Side Source book (waits for flood of anti-Wars flame to die down) I hopped onto the 'net to find out what was available any more. Needless to say I stumbled into the headache caused by the shift over to Decipher.

I have to say, I like Decipher. I REALLY like Decipher. If I were physically equipped, I might offer to bear their children. I played their Star Wars CCG until Lucasfilm (*shakes angry fist*) decided that the license needed to move over to Hasbro (see how well THAT move has done for them.) The Lucas Loonies had also pulled up RPG roots from WEG to favor Hasbro, a move that leaves me with mixed feelings, WEG went into far more depth for backstory and universe notes, whereas I do truly like the d20 system.

Needless to say, when I look at the Trek RPG and find the headache of another switched license, I was next to snapping. What is it about the people who run our favorite franchises? Why is it that despite the fact that we will acknowledge the legal ownership these people have over the universes we escape to (aside from that restraining order) we cannot abide by their seemingly random and highly foolish decisions?

well, enough ranting about the fickle sea that our nerddom finds itself cast upon, I actually write to ask if others regularly have problems finding others to play with. I've been in any number of Dungeons and Dragons cmapaigns, from the mundane to the engrossing, and I never have problems finding a group for that, but when I want to pull out my Star Trek or Star Wars RPGs here at college I can't find anyone. I GMed Star Wars for a little while, but I don't have what it takes to keep my group here at school involved. Running an internet campaign with my friends at home (who have always liked my campaigns) is simply not viable. Am I the only one who runs dry of fellow Role-Players?


(P.S. the decision to curtail the political posts was a wise one, I have seen internet friendships that existed for years flash-burn over a few harsh words exchanged on the topic of politics. We as a species have to learn that differing opinions do not indicate evil, that we are all wrong in many areas, and that everyone has an equal right to arrive at the exact opposite of correct. Wow, was that even a sentence? I think my dead English Teacher is spinning in his grave.)

I suspect that behind the scenes, a lot of campaigning goes on, during which each company tries to convince the license holder that it will do the best job. That encompasses all the facets:

• Pay the most for the license.
• Treat the property with respect.
• Breadth of utilization (how many products planned).
• Produce interesting material.
• Continuity of relationship.
• Treat the fans with respect.

It's no different, except in scale, than when you call three or four people to see who will do the best job of putting in a new furnace: you listen to the various offers, pick the one you like the best.

Sometimes, companies bite off more than they can chew. Sometimes, to get business "A", they agree to also do task "B", something they're unequipped for, and must learn.

I would say that the CODA system is a fine gaming engine. I like it better, in fact, than the ICON system. Not everyone agrees.

The problems I have with Decipher are these:

• Slow and erratic publishing schedule.
• Very little customer feedback.
• High prices [1].

[1] I believe that the prices are consistent with the quality -- but I would prefer to also see lower priced offerings, perhaps in black and white, for some products. It won't happen because part of their job is to sell the licensed property, and in the game context that's best done with still photos and lots of them.

The first two of these, I see as a fairly significant problem. I don't mind waiting for the books because I like them, but it's very hard to attract new customers when you've got a reputation that says the customer can't ever be sure when something it going to come out. It can even be hard to keep existing customers.

There seem to be significant lags between when something is created, and when it is published: it took the better part of a year for the Star Trek Narrator's screen to see print, and when it did, none of the errata was fixed. A lot of potential custom was lost (including mine -- I'd made my own screen by then). Folks might have accepted that better if there had been less lag.

It might be that Decipher's recent decision to move the RPG Studio is an attempt to address some of these concerns. Time will tell.

Playing tastes vary greatly so, even in cities with large gaming populations like my hometown of Ann Arbor, sometimes it can be very difficult to find players. I have not jumped on the d20 bandwagon, for example, and finding people who want to play anything other than d20-based games is a challenge. Most of the folks with whom I formerly played Pendragon and/or HeroQuest have either moved out of the immediate area or recently began families. You are not alone, KnnOs...

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Originally posted by KnnOs
I have to say, I like Decipher. I REALLY like Decipher. If I were physically equipped, I might offer to bear their children. I played their Star Wars CCG until Lucasfilm (*shakes angry fist*) decided that the license needed to move over to Hasbro (see how well THAT move has done for them.) The Lucas Loonies had also pulled up RPG roots from WEG to favor Hasbro, a move that leaves me with mixed feelings, WEG went into far more depth for backstory and universe notes, whereas I do truly like the d20 system.

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There's a reason for that. George Lucas is a shareholder in Hasbro which, as we know, owns Wizards of The Coast.

This message has been removed on request by the
poster

"Very little customer feedback."

Ah, I remembered the good ol' days when LUG was publishing Trek RPG, and we had this e-mail discussion list where we get our feedback to Ross Isaacs and Steve Long, and in turn give us rules answers to rules questions. We even discussed the latest DS9 episodes and try to put what we see in a rules perspective.

Ah, those were good times.

* starts rocking his chair on the old porch *

a) Welcome to the boards, mr nOs.
b) I can't believe everyone selected the squirrel option above...
c) Play nice, Liz.
d) Ranger, you're making me feel old.

*Runs in"

I heard there was a newbie here? Wow?

Lemme see lemme see.

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Originally posted by Robbert Raets
b) I can't believe everyone selected the squirrel option above...

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But a nice blue rodent makes such a wonderful conversation topic.

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c) Play nice, Liz.

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Right, she now has two kids to deal with. Let the lady vent a little.

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d) Ranger, you're making me feel old.

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Robbert, you are. :)

All I can say is that I like the Decipher RPG Studio, when it has its full team of former LUG employees (sans Charles Ryan and one other who remains at WotC).

But ultimately they're the RPG designer pool. It's the upper management of Decipher, who started the business as a TCG maker and de facto rival to WotC. Although partial responsibility is placed on Paramount who as part of the licensing process, must approve material before it can go to print, I can't help but wonder if Decipher is ready to get into the RPG business in the first place. If so, why aren't they devoting their resources to get that Studio going and their products moving out? Are they getting some resistance from their TCG fanbase?

One other thing, why are they continuing to make third-party licensed products? Don't you think it is time they started making their own ORIGINAL product?

They better get their company (including their upper management offices) re-organized and better find a clear focus on what their goals are for both departments: TCG and RPG.